Carl Gustav Jung first wanted to be an archaeologist. When family finances made this impossible, he pursued a medical degree from Basel University. Considering a specialization in surgery, he stumbled upon a psychiatry book--an event that changed the course of his life and ultimately the whole field of depth psychology.
Anthony Storr looks at these and other telling facts about Jung's life in the opening chapter of this highly acclaimed book. Though fundamentally concerned with Jung's ideas, Storr's approach shows his conviction that "in the realm of dynamic psychology it is impossible to separate ideas from the personality of the man in whom they occurred." His clear and concise review of the whole corpus of Jung's writings always keeps in sight the man behind the work, as each subsequent chapter concentrates on a particular Jungian concept, guiding the reader through the life and ideas of this great thinker.
Storr investigates the major principles of analytical psychology, presenting such central concepts as the collective unconscious, the archetypes, the shadow, and the persona. He looks at Jung's religious turmoil and his inner need to reconcile the opposition between objectivity and subjectivity. He shows how his ideas follow a progression from the intellectual agitation that characterized the young psychologist to the advanced theories of balance and integration found in the mature man. Storr concludes his book with a look at psychotherapy, describing advances as well as problems involved in a practical consideration of Jungian techniques.
Perhaps the most remarkable element of "Jung" is its illumination of complex concepts--concepts that had they been easily accessible in the original would have caused a wider appreciation of Jung's work. The clarity and order that Storr brings to light in Jung's psychology will come as a welcome surprise to those who have found him an obscure if provocative thinker. Storr's sensitive analysis makes the book compelling reading for everyone interested in Jung, and his clear exposition provides a superior introduction for newcomers, allowing the genius of Jung to appear for the widest possible audience.
First published in 1973, this classic study is now available again. The Routledge edition includes a brief preface in which the author describes his previous work on Jung as well as his meeting with the great Swiss thinker.

'Extremely engaging... A book full of good moments and humane insights.' Alan Ryan, Observer This book collects the essays of one of England's best-known and most distinguished psychiatrists. Its theme is creativity. What internal dynamic forces artists, scientists and politicians to devote so much time and energy to creative invention? Anthony Storr weighs and tests Freud's theory that creativity is the result of dissatisfaction by examining the impulses which drove such figures as Churchill, Kafka and Newton. Whether he is exploring the 'divine discontent' that motivates creativity, analysing Jung's mid-life crisis, assessing the psychology of jealousy in Othello or denouncing the abuses of psychiatry, Storr brings wisdom, erudition and compassion to all his subjects in this highly readable and human collection, which is accessible to those who know nothing about psychoanalysis as well as to those who know a great deal.

Originally published in 1988, Anthony Storr's enlightening meditation on the creative individual's need for solitude has become a classic.

"Solitude" was seminal in challenging the established belief that "interpersonal relationships of an intimate kind are the chief, if not the only, source of human happiness." Indeed, most self-help literature still places relationships at the center of human existence. Lucid and lyrical, Storr's book cites numerous examples of brilliant scholars and artists -- from Beethoven and Kant to Anne Sexton and Beatrix Potter -- to demonstrate that solitude ranks alongside relationships in its impact on an individual's well-being and productivity, as well as on society's progress and health. But solitary activity is essential not only for geniuses, says Storr; the average person, too, is enriched by spending time alone.

For fifteen years, readers have found inspiration and renewal in Storr's erudite, compassionate vision of human experience.

A sparkling and up-to-date new cover for one of Fontana Press’s strongest-selling titles.

This compact volume of extracts from the twenty volumes of Jung’s published writings presents him clearly, in his own words and in precis.Jung’s writing is the key to understanding 20th-century psychology, psychiatry and psychoanalysis. Most of the terms of reference now used (‘extrovert’, ‘collective unconscious’, ‘archetype’) are Jungian.

This is essential reading for both students of psychology and the general reader.

Storr’s The Art of Psychotherapy first appeared in 1979 and became an instant classic. After Storr’s death, a third edition was rewritten and revised by Jeremy Holmes, and this fourth edition is a further up-to-date iteration. Storr (1920-2001) and Holmes, both medical psychoanalytic psychotherapists, are ‘elders’ in the world of psychotherapy whose eclectic, experienced and cultured voices offer students and psychotherapy practitioners clinical wisdom hard to find elsewhere. Their book expounds in a very practical way the issues entailed in setting up and maintaining a psychotherapeutic relationship and practice: how to introduce oneself, arrange one’s consulting room, establish a contract, when and how to make ‘interpretations'. The second half of the book deals with more general and often problematic issues, including how to align therapy in the light of diagnosis, working with ‘difficult’ patients, therapy termination, and the life course of a therapist, ending with a valedictory overview. In this fourth edition, Holmes has added a chapter on the scientific validation of psychotherapy, sections on tele- and e-therapy, non-binary gender and sexual identities, and the impact of race and class on the therapeutic relationship. This engaging, accessible, and profound book is essential reading for psychotherapists, counsellors, psychiatrists and mental health practitioners in training or practice.

The current interest in Jung shows no sign of abating, with international controversy surrounding the origins of analytical psychology. Jung in Contexts: A Reader is a unique collection of the most important essays on Jung and analytical psychology over the past two decades. A comprehensive introduction traces the growth and development of analytical psychology and its institutions. The nine essays which follow place Jung, the man and his work, in three important contexts: historical, literary and intellectual. In historical context, Jungs visions during his 'confrontation with the unconscious', his attitude towards National Socialism, and the composition of his so-called 'autobiography' are examined. Next, in literary context, two essays investigate Jungs reading of E.T.A. Hoffman, and Thomas Manns reception of Jungian ideas. Finally, in intellectual context, Jungs work is viewed in terms of the traditions of German and French thought from which it drew so many impulses: Schopenhauer, Nietzsche, Bergson. Written by leading scholars on the history of Jungian psychology, Jung in Contexts: A Reader is an indispensable introductory text for postgraduates, professionals and all those interested in Jung.

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Originally published in 1972, this fully revised edition was published in 1991 and provides a classic study of humanity s capacity for evil.

The human species is capable of the most appalling cruelty. Why is this and where does our capacity for such destructiveness come from? In "Human Destructiveness," Anthony Storr explores these important questions.

In seeking to shed light on such brutal phenomena as genocide, racial conflict and other large-scale manifestations of violence, he cautions against easy extrapolations from individual behaviour to the behaviour of groups and nations, though he offers illuminating discussions of aggressive personality disorders, sadomasochism and the mechanisms of paranoid delusion. Most provocatively, he locates the propensity for mass outbreaks of cruelty in the imagination: to be able to see fellow human beings as wholly evil requires an imaginative capacity not found in other species.

Combining wide scholarship, humane intelligence and a graceful style, "Human Destructiveness" provides an illuminating study of some of the darkest corners of the human psyche."

The current interest in Jung shows no sign of abating, with international controversy surrounding the origins of analytical psychology. Jung in Contexts is a unique collection of the most important essays on Jung and analytical psychology over the past two decades.
A comprehensive introduction traces the growth and development of analytical psychology and its institutions. The nine essays which follow place Jung, the man and his work, in three important contexts: historical, literary and intellectual. In historical context, Jung's visions during his confrontation with the unconscious, his attitude towards National Socialism, and the composition of his so-called autobiography are examined. Next, in literary context, two essays investigate Jung's reading of E.T.A. Hoffman, and Thomas Mann's reception of Jungian ideas. Finally, in intellectual context, Jung's work is viewed in terms of the traditions of German and French thought from which it drew so many impulses: Schopenhauer, Nietzsche, Bergson.

There are many reports of strange cults which enthral their followers and cut themselves off from the world. Invariably led by gurus, or "spiritual leaders", the fruit of these cults are mass suicides in the South American jungle or the self-immolation of hundreds in besieged fortresses. This study provides an examination of these men and women and of those who follow them. It takes as example some of those considered to be modern gurus - James Jones, David Koresh, the Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, Gurdjieff and others - and establishes what each of them has in common. It then examines what they share with other gurus whose teachings are accepted or at least respected - Jung, Freud, Ignatius Loyola, Jesus himself - and finds some startling continuities.

First published in 1972, this fully revised edition was originally published in 1991 and provides a classic study of humanity's capacity for evil. The human species is capable of the most appalling cruelty. Why is this and where does our capacity for such destructiveness come from? In Human Destructiveness, Anthony Storr explores these important questions. In seeking to shed light on such brutal phenomena as genocide, racial conflict and other large-scale manifestations of violence, he cautions against easy extrapolations from individual behaviour to the behaviour of groups and nations, though he offers illuminating discussions of aggressive personality disorders, sadomasochism and the mechanisms of paranoid delusion. Most provocatively, he locates the propensity for mass outbreaks of cruelty in the imagination: 'to be able to see fellow human beings as wholly evil requires an imaginative capacity not found in other species.' Combining wide scholarship, humane intelligence and a graceful style, Human Destructiveness provides an illuminating study of some of the darkest corners of the human psyche.

Why does music have such a powerful effect on our minds and bodies? It is the most mysterious and most intangible of all forms of art. Yet, Anthony Storr believes, music today is a deeply significant experience for a greater number of people than ever before. In this challenging book, he explores why this should be so. Drawing on a wide variety of opinions, Storr argues that the patterns of music make sense of our inner experience, giving both structure and coherence to our feelings and emotions. It is because music possesses this capacity to restore our sense of personal wholeness in a culture which requires us to separate rational thought from feelings, that many people find it so life-enhancing.

“Anyone who feels like reflecting about the origins, the impact and the significance of music will find Dr Storr’s book helpful and stimulating.”
ALFRED BRENDEL

“This beautifully written book, humane, intelligent and thoughtful, is a significant contribution to our understanding of those mysterious movements of the mind.”
ADAM LIVELY, 'Times Educational Supplement'

“It is stimulating inquiry aimed at discovering what it is about music that so profoundly moves so many people, in the course of which he describes the physical effects of mescaline, considers the relation of bird-song, the burbling of babies and the language of literature to music, and touches on many other fascinating topics, concluding that its most significant aspect for us is its power to create order out of chaos.”
FRANCES PARTRIDGE, 'Spectator'

“Reading Storr’s work is always like being taken on a journey through a foreign country by a great enthusiast. It doesn’t matter if you don’t know the language because he teaches you what you need to know along the way. His knowledge is vast and his enthusiasm infectious…Storr is an extraordinarily gifted communicator.”
MARY LOUDON, 'New Statesman & Society'

An eye-opening investigation of charismatic "gurus" from Jesus to Freud to David Koresh, by the author of "Solitude: A Return to the Self." In "Feet of Clay," eminent psychologist Anthony Storr uncovers the personality traits that link these men and explores the incredible power they have wielded over their fanatical followers. 11 photos.

In this compact volume, British psychiatrist and writer Anthony Storr has selected extracts from Jung's writings that pinpoint his many original contributions and relate the development of his thought to his biography. Storr's explanatory notes and introduction show the progress and coherence of Jung's ideas. These notes link the extracts, and with Dr. Storr's introduction, they show the progress and coherence of Jung's ideas, including such concepts as the collective unconscious, the archetypes, introversion and extroversion, individuation, and Jung's view of integration as the goal of the development of the personality.Jung maintained that we are profoundly ignorant of ourselves and that our most pressing task is to deflect our gaze away from the external world and toward the study of our own nature. In a world torn by conflict and threatened by annihilation, his message has an urgent relevance for every thoughtful person.

Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) revolutionized the way in which we think about ourselves. From its beginnings as a theory of neurosis, Freud developed psycho-analysis into a general psychology which became widely accepted as the predominant mode of discussing personality and interpersonal relationships.

'Brings excellent news for those who, whatever their reasons for doing so, live alone ... Heartening' Anita Brookner, Spectator 'Storr is an incapable of writing an uninteresting paragraph' Sunday Times' How can we find value in spending time alone? Many of the history's geniuses were, by nature or circumstance, often solitary. Beethoven, Beatrix Potter, Henry James, Wittgenstein, Kipling. In this book, acclaimed psychiatrist Dr Anthony Storr explores the psychological value of spending time alone. How can we reconnect with what matters to us outside of our social relationships? How can we find an emotional difference between being alone and being lonely? Insightful and inspiring, this is a book that can help us feel more comfortable spending time alone, and show how to use solitude to focus on our interests, values and creative energies beyond the social sphere.